A Second Take
by KenRik
Summary: Alternate Ending. In which Saya leads a life without Haji her chevalier, but Haji, the reincarnated boy from her past, her present, and future. HajiSaya


Disclaimer: I do not own Blood+.

I really can't understand how Haji survived after getting trapped into bits of tattered flesh underneath the ruins of the MET, and to top it off, that whole place was swept clean by a missile. HOW DID HE SURVIVE? Can they regenerate from tiny cell organisms? I HIGHLY DOUBT IT. Anyway, as much as I want Saya and Haji to be together forever, it's a pretty nice pinch of salt to add to the story. Haji actually dying. Both in the manga and the anime. No need to do me favors dear writers, kill off as many characters as you want. As long as its a clear canon with Haji and Saya, anything by your book is fine.

So, to ammend this alternate ending, or the ending that makes more sense, I'll be making a story showing the good possibilities amidst Haji's death. Ever heard of reincarnation? Yes, this for me is the second chance to Saya and Haji's happiness. And since Saya doesn't age, they could start all over again.

* * *

A Second Take

* * *

She woke up five years after the alotted thirty year hibernation. She woke up in a daze of memories, of fiery battles and shrill cries, of bombs and spluttering blood. Unlike her previous awakening of total amnesia, her past struck her like a gunshot to the head. When Kai, aged and wrinkled, found her trembling naked on the cold pavement of their family's grave, he fell beside her form and draped his jacket over her amidst the cool winter's air. As he did so, he was followed by the shocked gazes of his nieces and children.

"Saya." He carefully called out. His eyes reflecting the hurt flashing through her trembling hazel irises. Slowly, she looked up at her brother. And with her eyebrows knitting together in confusion, she fell into his arms in defeat as the memories kept surging in. That night, amidst the cool air, amidst the questioning eyes of her younger relatives, she balled her eyes out with the tears that accumulated over those thirty-five years.

It been five years since her awakening. Five years and yet sleep continued to evade her. Five years and yet she was wide awake. She didn't know if she should be thankful or not.

"Saya-chan!" Called out one of her nieces. Beside her stood Kai, older than ever. "Does this look good on me?" Kai, who had promised her Haji was alive. That one day, the tall man who held her heart for over a century without her knowing, would come waltzing back into their lives. Sometimes, she thought as she faked a smile at her godchild, it was easier to stop hoping at all. Her niece giggled, followed by her twin, as they raced towards the fitting booth.

Saya smile worriedly as she took a seat on one of the waiting areas with Kai frowning beside her.

"Those two think I'm made of money." He gritted. His voice had grown hoarse with age, and his teeth chattered lightly when he spoke. Saya could only fight back a laugh. "Hey." Kai said, his tone was suddenly serious. "Are you doing fine?"

"Yes. Of course." Saya chided with a laugh. "I've always wanted to live like this. And I am."

"Good." Kai smiled at her. "Good."

Suddenly, someone coughed loudly beside Kai, catching his attention. It was a child, no more than thirteen, glaring down at the old man as if he was an enemy scorned.

"Old man, fill out this survey." The boy ordered with a glare. His black hair curling in a princely manner, something that pointlessly irked Kai for some unknown reason.

"Yeah." Kai gritted out. "If you tell that again with the proper accent." He finished, scowling at the child. The boy with the pale skin and handsome features only glared even more at the older man. His hand was already outstreched, handing out a form to Kai.

"Just answer it, Kai." Saya laughed, finally sitting up. As she reached out to get the form from the hand of the boy, her eyes slowly widened, finally dawning sight on the face of the snotty young lad. Her fingers went numb. Her face paled. And her breath hitched. The boy who looked back at her with a raise of his brow could only frown, a light blush touching his cheeks, as his eyes snapped back to Kai.

"Wha-whatever." The child just said in a stutter. As he spun around, ready to leave, his eyes widened.

"Ha-haji!" Saya had called out suddenly. Kai's eyes widened as his eyes turned to the retreating child in realization.

"Haji?" He couldn't help but repeat in disbelief.

"How do you know my name?" Haji asked, taken back, with his cheeks still flushed pink. Especially now as Saya's eyes continued to glue at him. Saya suddenly sprawled on Kai's lap, and immediately latched on to the boy's sleeve. Her eyes looked up to his pale blue ones, pleading. "Wha-what?" He continued to bark.

Yet "Haji." was all that Saya could utter.

"Hey, my teacher's giving me a sour look. If you're not answering my survey, I'm leaving."

"Answer it, Kai!" Saya cried, throwing a copy at Kai while still locking gaze with the boy.

"What? I'm not answering anything!" Kai retorted like a child, brushing off the paper from his face.

"Then I'm leaving!"

"Don't!"

"Why?" Haji continued to ask amidst his clenched jaw and pink face. Ultimately, all Saya could do was puff red.

"Be-because."

"_Saya_."

"Be-because." Her voice faltered.

"_Saya_." The speaker from her memory smiled at her.

"Because." And just like that, she released her hold on the child and could only muster up a smile before abruptly looking away, tears tempting to drip from the corner of her eyes. "I'm sorry." She croaked as she bit back the tears. She closed her eyes as she fought back the dreaded beads, but the image of Haji's face smiling at her as he told her he loved her flashed even more vividly before her.

"Dad!" Hibiki had called out from the store. "We're done! Pay up!" She yelled with a laugh, Kanade emerging giddily behind her. Kai, not knowing what to do, was suddenly helped up by Saya. The boy beside them walked away in confusion as Saya led Kai towards her nieces without speaking a word.

Within that year, Saya went back into her thirty year long hibernation. And the next time she wakes up, Kai would be gone.

But surprisingly, she wakes up nine years later.

* * *

"You haven't aged at all." A man suddnely uttered from behind her. Looking up, Saya could only smile. She was at France and with Haji, the boy she had met and befriended a few years back.

"Does that scare you?" Saya asked good-naturedly as she took a hot cup of coffee off Haji's hands.

"Not one bit." Haji smiled at her, draping his right hand on top of hers. Saya's eyes widened at this. Her eyes unnoticeably glances over to his hand, normal and dainty as they had originally had been. This man beside her was Haji, had she not given him the burden of living life as she did. But he was and will never be her Haji. The man she loved, the man who had loved her amidst it all. Carefully, she took back her hand and beside her, Haji could only fight back a knowing smile.

A few days after that, Kai died. And the only good it wrought Saya was the comfort of being there to mourn for him.

* * *

As it should have been, Saya cut all relations with the Haji she had met at the mall. If he truly was her Haji living a new life, she wanted him to live it fully now that he wasn't tainted by the memories of an ill past. She wanted him to find his place in the world. She wanted him to marry. She wanted him to live happily. He deserved to be happy. Now, all she had were her nieces and their lovers and their families. It has been three years, and she is sure sleep is bound to come. And honestly, she couldn't be any more thankful for it.

"Haji." She cries in recollection as a million faces flashed through her mind that night as she lay on her bed.

"Saya."

As her eyes drifted to slumber, she woke up the following day finding herself before Haji. The boy she met at the Zoo, the man she had fallen in love with. And as it goes, they lived eternity together in a life where there was no ill past to taint them.


End file.
